More skills based grading at madison hs

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:How does this lower grades? Only being assessed on major assignments is college-like. Someone said one mistake gives you a B on a test. That’s the part that’s confusing. And won’t colleges be comparing kids within the same school?

In my kid’s class 1 wrong is a B. 2 wrong is a C. Wrong in can be a paper where something underlined should have been italicized. Done once is a B. It goes down from there.

So they’ve raised the bar to get an A?

I have several kids at madison. Yes, in my experience, much harder now. There is no reason a small, technical issue done once should result in a B.

There is only one reason, equitable grading and closing the gap.

How is raising the bar “closing the gap” or eQuItAbLe grading?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does this lower grades? Only being assessed on major assignments is college-like. Someone said one mistake gives you a B on a test. That’s the part that’s confusing. And won’t colleges be comparing kids within the same school?

In my kid’s class 1 wrong is a B. 2 wrong is a C. Wrong in can be a paper where something underlined should have been italicized. Done once is a B. It goes down from there.

So they’ve raised the bar to get an A?

I think with the broad rubrics, it’s more subjective than ever before. I wouldn’t call it raising the bar. If anything, expectations are lower.

So it's both harder and easier. Makes sense.

Stfu. Clearly you don’t have high achieving kids that go there. If you don’t have kids there, skip the snark and listen. Maybe you’ll learn something.

You seem really stable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does this lower grades? Only being assessed on major assignments is college-like. Someone said one mistake gives you a B on a test. That’s the part that’s confusing. And won’t colleges be comparing kids within the same school?

In my kid’s class 1 wrong is a B. 2 wrong is a C. Wrong in can be a paper where something underlined should have been italicized. Done once is a B. It goes down from there.

So they’ve raised the bar to get an A?

I have several kids at madison. Yes, in my experience, much harder now. There is no reason a small, technical issue done once should result in a B.

There is only one reason, equitable grading and closing the gap.

How is raising the bar “closing the gap” or eQuItAbLe grading?

Because when the poor performing students do well, say a C or B on a single assignment it sticks as their final grade. System intentionally confusing and convoluted to allow desired results.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does this lower grades? Only being assessed on major assignments is college-like. Someone said one mistake gives you a B on a test. That’s the part that’s confusing. And won’t colleges be comparing kids within the same school?

In my kid’s class 1 wrong is a B. 2 wrong is a C. Wrong in can be a paper where something underlined should have been italicized. Done once is a B. It goes down from there.

So they’ve raised the bar to get an A?

I have several kids at madison. Yes, in my experience, much harder now. There is no reason a small, technical issue done once should result in a B.

There is only one reason, equitable grading and closing the gap.

How is raising the bar “closing the gap” or eQuItAbLe grading?

Because when the poor performing students do well, say a C or B on a single assignment it sticks as their final grade. System intentionally confusing and convoluted to allow desired results.

If a student does well then what’s the issue with them getting a B or C?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does this lower grades? Only being assessed on major assignments is college-like. Someone said one mistake gives you a B on a test. That’s the part that’s confusing. And won’t colleges be comparing kids within the same school?

In my kid’s class 1 wrong is a B. 2 wrong is a C. Wrong in can be a paper where something underlined should have been italicized. Done once is a B. It goes down from there.

So they’ve raised the bar to get an A?

I have several kids at madison. Yes, in my experience, much harder now. There is no reason a small, technical issue done once should result in a B.

There is only one reason, equitable grading and closing the gap.

How is raising the bar “closing the gap” or eQuItAbLe grading?

Because when the poor performing students do well, say a C or B on a single assignment it sticks as their final grade. System intentionally confusing and convoluted to allow desired results.

If a student does well then what’s the issue with them getting a B or C?

Based on an earlier post (in this thread):
"This is why it’s BS when a responder keeps claiming SBG doesn’t bring down the top kids. Yes, it does. It’s like comparing kids with retakes to kids who get no retakes. Massive difference between them."

From what I can tell, the comparative advantage is what some fear their kids are losing. SBG is supposed to give kids multiple opportunities to practice a skill, attempt it, and hopefully master it. Those who show mastery on the first assessment don't get recognition that they were "better" or faster than the kids who showed mastery of the same skill after 3 tests that assessed that skill.

SBG seems to de-emphasize the comparative aspect of grading between different students; instead, focusing on a more individual path of each student progressing at their own pace toward mastery of skills X, Y, and Z.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

[Anonymous]

I actually had a kid at Madison. Had because we switched this year to private school and I’m following to see if we need to do the same for my middle schooler.

The issue isn’t the grading and how assessments count. The issue is you can’t understand how assessments are graded. You write a paper or take a test and now get a 2.0 or a 3.0 or a 4.0. There was very little to no explanation to where these numbers were coming from. It would be different if there were clear rubrics or points but there were not. Grades seemed subjective with a 3.0/B written on the top of a big test without any clear explanation on why it wasn’t an A or a C.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

The PP was saying students from other FCPS schools have an advantage over Madison students but this won’t be the case if it’s implemented everywhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

The PP was saying students from other FCPS schools have an advantage over Madison students but this won’t be the case if it’s implemented everywhere.

Yes, I’m aware of what she was trying to say. The operative word is IF. This is unhelpful to any current students who have any any time with this garbage before it’s implemented elsewhere. All current students are disadvantaged.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

The PP was saying students from other FCPS schools have an advantage over Madison students but this won’t be the case if it’s implemented everywhere.

Yes, I’m aware of what she was trying to say. The operative word is IF. This is unhelpful to any current students who have any any time with this garbage before it’s implemented elsewhere. All current students are disadvantaged.

Patently false. Current Madison students are not disadvantaged because colleges only compare Madison kids against other Madison kids. Not against any other kids from any other FCPS school. This is basic knowledge of the college application process. Comparing strength of course load among Madison kids is the primary factor.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:ehh... my kid doesn't care THAT much about grades. Of course we want him to do his best, but we aren't getting our panties in a bunch just because they tweak the grading system a little one way or the other.

Apparently the grading system isn't "demotivating" him or others too much. My kid scored a perfect score on the PSAT math and did pretty well on the Reading/Writing section. And if you saw the other thread, apparently, 40% of kids have a 4.0! I doubt that the grading policy is demotivating kids so much that they aren't learning what they need to learn. AP exams and SAT scores are objective measures of kids learning material or not.

Just learn. Do your best. Live life and carry on.

That's wonderful we don't have to worry about your child with a perfect psat score for whatever grading is decided going forward. A huge relief.

Kids CAN learn with whatever grading policy is used. I know some of you like to think the grading policy is THE most important piece of educating kids. I just don't think it is. And apparently a lot of kids are doing quite well by objective measures (even if a few kids/parents don't think the quality of classroom discussion is up to par or that their kids feel "demotivated" by the system). Adapt, people.

Or not. Don't fix something if it aint broke. I don't like the new grading system. Very little if anything of benefit and a lot wrong with it. You've said nothing beneficial other than come on guys, why are you making my new proposal so tough to implement? There are no benefits and you admit your straight A kid isn't affected so why even post if you have no agenda? You have some agenda beyond your kid. That's certain. People care about other stuff. It's just that this is the change that is going on so we're having a discussion on it. That's the topic here.

My "agenda" is observing overly dramatic parents making mountains out of molehills, and encouraging parents to step back and get some perspective. Grading policy tweaks are not the be-all-and-end-all of education. Kids ARE learning. Somehow! Take a breather and let it go. Your kid will be alright even if they don't get a special award for doing it faster than someone else. Namasté!

+1

Having homework not count towards a final grade isn’t going to make all of the top-performing kids suddenly start to fail. So ridiculous.

Some people just like to complain. They get off on it.

Like you? You sat this doesn't affect you but then are on here day after day? Why? Do you get off on it? Project much? People just want the old grading system. That's actually the opposite of complaining. You could say this change is a complaint. At any rate you have no business being in this discussion because you have no pros or cons for the old or the new system. Your posts contribute nothing.

I never said it doesn’t affect me. You are confusing posters.

My point was that having homework not count towards a final grade isn’t going to make all of the top-performing kids suddenly start to fail. It’s a ridiculous argument.

I’m not worried about my kids failing. What I am worried about is a lot more Bs and Cs that make them less competitive for selective schools (not Ivys) just because the admin has decided to mess around with a new system explicitly intended to lower GPAs of top students. I am under no delusions that this is catastrophic, it’s not. My kids and most kids at Madison will still go to college. But it is unfair and I see no reason for this to continue because it seems like an initiative done not for the students but to give the principal something for their resume.

Who is more stressed out about grades and getting ahead of the Jones'? Kids or parents?

Might be the parents.

A lot of kids want to go to VT or even UVA. It’s not fair that Madison kids are at a disadvantage. It is incredibly stressful for hardworking Madison students. Ask any junior or senior other than your own kid.

Most of us don’t want to pay OOS tuition because our kids couldn’t get into VA state schools, and we want them to have an equal shot at the most competitive VA schools they can get into.

Getting ahead of the Joneses? What? High school is supposed to be where things matter. Why do you think it’s ok to harm someone’s future or change the outcome all to make administrators look better? It’s sick. These kids are really excited about their future and full of dreams. This SBG process makes them cynical.

You brought up VT and UVA, thank you. Any faculty members aware of what’s coming down the pike wrt student preparedness for college?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

The PP was saying students from other FCPS schools have an advantage over Madison students but this won’t be the case if it’s implemented everywhere.

Yes, I’m aware of what she was trying to say. The operative word is IF. This is unhelpful to any current students who have any any time with this garbage before it’s implemented elsewhere. All current students are disadvantaged.

Patently false. Current Madison students are not disadvantaged because colleges only compare Madison kids against other Madison kids. Not against any other kids from any other FCPS school. This is basic knowledge of the college application process. Comparing strength of course load among Madison kids is the primary factor.

Lemme guess: you don’t have kids
OR
Your kids already graduated and are at good colleges

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the problem is that outside of the VA colleges the students will be compared by Country/ region. So my child who doesn’t get to take retakes at Madison will be compared to another student at McLean who does. As mentioned the practices are not similar to the assessments and are not graded so students don’t know what to expect or fully understand how much they know the content before they take the assessment. It really is pushing students to a B

Isn’t this being implemented across FCPS?

How does that help the current students?

The PP was saying students from other FCPS schools have an advantage over Madison students but this won’t be the case if it’s implemented everywhere.

Yes, I’m aware of what she was trying to say. The operative word is IF. This is unhelpful to any current students who have any any time with this garbage before it’s implemented elsewhere. All current students are disadvantaged.

Patently false. Current Madison students are not disadvantaged because colleges only compare Madison kids against other Madison kids. Not against any other kids from any other FCPS school. This is basic knowledge of the college application process. Comparing strength of course load among Madison kids is the primary factor.

Maybe at a few schools this is partly correct. For the others a complete no. There is no benefit to this system. None. I'm tired of arguing all the possible negatives. There is nothing positive from a student's perspective

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I actually had a kid at Madison. Had because we switched this year to private school and I’m following to see if we need to do the same for my middle schooler.

The issue isn’t the grading and how assessments count. The issue is you can’t understand how assessments are graded. You write a paper or take a test and now get a 2.0 or a 3.0 or a 4.0. There was very little to no explanation to where these numbers were coming from. It would be different if there were clear rubrics or points but there were not. Grades seemed subjective with a 3.0/B written on the top of a big test without any clear explanation on why it wasn’t an A or a C.

It’s insane. Madison was a very good school and it’s being run into the ground by Michelle Reid and Liz Calvert.